Take Two
by ClassyLassie
Summary: Christine and Raoul have fled the Opera Populaire. Meg Giry feels alone since her best friend is gone, until one night when she ventures into Christine's old dressing room...Will the Phantom turn to her to get Christine back? or will he fall for Meg?
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: I own none of the characters that are presented here, although I must say they're very nice characters. I do not own anything that belongs to Andrew Lloyd Webber

A/N: In this fanfic the fire that destroyed the Opera House never happened, but Christine still fled with Raoul and is living in a different part of Paris.

Twirling, leaping and humming softly was what Meg Giry was doing now. Remembering the steps was easy; not letting her mind wander was harder.

Ever since poor Christine fled from the Opera Populaire with Raoul, she had had a tough time doing her most favorite thing--dancing. Not many people knew but she was down in the Phantom's lair directly after he let Christine and Raoul go. She was there in the shadows while the police searched for the mysterious opera house ghost. Even her mother didn't know, and she seemed to know everything.

"Meg!" her mother, Madame Giry yelled.

Her mother was the ballet instructor for the Opera Populaire and if she made one wrong step, her __mamam?__ would stomp her cane on the ground and make her redo it…several times. Her mother though was also having a hard time. Most of the ballet students had left, fearing the Phantom would return and do even more dreadful deeds.

"Yes, Madame." Meg replied quietly, re-doing the Brisé that she forgot to do.

"We all want to be perfect ballerinas, no? So why don't we do the combination again."

The girls around Meg, glared at her, she tried to whisper back a quick apology but Madame Giry was counting out the steps already and she couldn't miss another one.

While in the dressing room, Meg's mind had wandered again, she thought about that last performance when her world, especially her best friend Christine's world, had gone astray. _Where was he_, she thought, _the Phantom must be here somewhere..._

After she had changed out of her leotard she was walking back to her room, to finish up the last bit of her homework her tutor had given her, when she noticed she had stopped beside Christine's old dressing room. It had always seemed to be beckoning her to venture in, but she had always been afraid and thought she would get in a lot more trouble then she needed if someone caught her. She hastily weighed the options and decided to just take a small peek in before anyone noticed she was missing.

Please send me feedback! I will write more I just don't feel like it now =]

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	2. Chapter 2

…She hastily weighed the options and decided to just take a small peek in before anyone noticed she was missing

The moment she had stepped into the dressing room, she felt a slight cold breeze, making her shiver. She silently slipped the door shut, and lit the nearest candle. Moving over to the dressing table she felt a slight brush on her shoulder, and gasped. Quickly, holding her hand over her mouth, she turned and saw it was just a cobweb. Meg breathed a sigh of relief and sat at the dressing table turning every now and then to make sure the door wouldn't open. And then she saw a sliver of light, barely enough to catch her eye, by the grand mirror that leaned against the far wall. Meg cautiously walked to the mirror and looked through the crack.

_Oh, _she thought, _this is the way down to the dark cellar…_

When Meg had gone down to the Phantom's lair to go after Christine, it had been extremely chaotic and doors everywhere were being thrown open, she had no idea she had gone through the mirror.

Meg pushed the mirror to the side, and put one foot through the now open doorway. It was pitch black, and she couldn't see a thing. Running her fingers along the wall, she could feel candelabras along the wall, but she had left the lit candle back in the room. Going a little further, her brain got the best of her, and she realized that it must be getting late.

She turned to go back, but heard what she thought was a footstep behind her. "Hello?" Meg whispered. "Who's there?"

But no one responded.

She crept back through the mirror, shut it and carefully ducked out of the dressing room, so no one would see her. The whole way back to her room, she wondered if the infamous Opera ghost was watching her.

The next morning, Meg pulled on her dance clothes and rushed out the door before realizing she didn't have class until evening that day. She chuckled to herself, and thought herself to be in such a good mood that she would show up early to class, and practice extra hard. Then she remembered what had happened last night. _Well, I really want to go back…and it is daylight…_ She concluded that she would return to the mirror and this time be braver, and venture in further.

In the hall she had passed her mother who Meg casually told- she was going to play with the other girls.

When Meg had gotten to the mirror again, she checked and re-checked that everything was set, and told herself she would not be afraid. She slid open the mirror, and cautiously lit the two nearest candles on the wall.


	3. Chapter 3

…She slid open the mirror, and cautiously lit the two nearest candles on the wall.

_There, that made it a little better_ she thought to herself. Meg kept walking and lighting candles every now and then. Becoming braver she started to hum a little and practice a few dance steps. She was so in the moment that she didn't hear the twinkling notes of a small music box coming from far below. Without realizing it, her humming began to hum the same small tune from the music box. It finally occurred to her that this music wasn't in her head; it was music coming from just a little ways down. Meg stopped and stared straight ahead, she saw that the walls were already lit, and there was a thick mist forming around the bottom of the stairs.

The tinkling music had stopped but instead she heard a soft voice and she stopped worrying for a minute, concentrating on only the music. She had finished walking down the seemingly endless amount of stairs and came to a lake, there was a small boat tethered to the side. She looked at the boat and lake and heard the same soft voice beckoning her to enter the small boat. She stepped in and thought about what she would say when she finally met the Phantom.

_Should I introduce myself? Should I ask about Christine? Will he hurt me? _

All of these questions and plenty more were running through Meg's head. The boat was moving on its own, and the song was getting stronger and closer. The boat reached land, and immediately stopped. Meg stepped cautiously out of the boat but slipped on a slick piece of ground which made her gasp and lose her balance. Before she could even fling her arms out to stop from falling, a firm hand grabbed her arm and held her steady. She looked into his eyes, afraid of what she would see…

"Are you lost?" "Or did you need me for something?" the Phantom asked.

"N-no I-I just…"

"You wanted to see just how hideous I am."

"No. I came here, to ask about Christine." Meg replied, more boldly than the last.

"Christine…She isn't here, she was never here." He replied while turning away

Stepping closer to him, Meg lightly touched his shoulder. He briskly turned towards her.

"Stop. You don't know what you're doing"

"I'm not afraid" Meg said while looking him straight in _those melting, cold but warm, beautiful eyes.._She shivered.

"Stay away…don't come back" he whispered, while turning back away.

Meg wanted to stay, but she knew she must get back, and it wouldn't be wise to remain here with the Phantom. _I mustn't push it..take it slow.._she thought.

When Meg had slowly walked away the Phantom was thinking…thinking too hard for him could be dangerous, last time people got hurt, killed even, and Christine…she had left.

"I have to get her back." "No..I can't…she's gone, with someone she...loves"

He walked back over to the dolls he had made so long ago, and stared at the only Christine he could keep…Thinking about ways he could maybe, if he was careful, get her back.


	4. Chapter 4

****Sorry this is really late!! And I'm going to try and start updating this again!! and sorry this one is short, I just published whatever I already had written!**********

_**CHAPTER 4**_

…Thinking about ways he could maybe, if he was careful, get her back.

Meg was making her way through the seemingly endless amount of stairs trying to reach the dressing room before anyone started to worry about where she was. _If only mother knew where I had just been. I'm sure she's calling for me now. What if there's a search party out? _With that, Meg quickened her steps, and burst through the dressing room mirror. Breathing heavily, she shut the mirror, blew out the few candles that were still lit, and opened the heavy wooden door out of the dressing room. Still slightly panting, Meg went to find her mother. She didn't have to look far, for her mother was rounding the corner.

"Vhere 'ave you been, child?" Madame Giry spoke curiously.

"Oh, maman. I have just been running around."

"I see..and 'ave you found anyzing to your liking?"

At this Meg blushed slightly and giggled, so her mom would only think she had met a new boy. Which ironically, she did.

The rest of the day seemed to pass by slowly. It was dark outside and Meg had just started to get ready for bed.


End file.
